[computerdude1985]

okay well my sister wants to upgrade her computer with more RAM and perhaps a new graphics card, but I told her I would post about it here for some advice. I wanted to know if its worth upgrading, or just going to buy a new computer altogether. She also wants to know if she upgrades her computer if she can install Windows 7, and if her computer can run it smoothly. I'm pretty sure she has DDR SDRAM, but I am not entirely sure, also does anyone know what the price range for new RAM is, or how many slots her computer can have because I told her if she has 2, 2 GB of RAM should be efficient enough, assuming her processor and computer hardware can work with it. Any help would be much appreciate thank you.

P.S.

I enclosed a computer report that has all of the computer information you will need.

Attached Files

•  Report.txt   25.28KB   99 downloads

Edited by computerdude1985, 24 October 2010 - 06:34 AM.

[Advertisements]

You can find out what type of RAM works with a given computer from the site Crucial.com, though you don't necessarily need to buy from that site. At any rate you will not be able to fully use 4GB or more of RAM under 32 bit versions of Windows.

What level she needs her computer to perform at, or how much it is worth, is really a judgement that only she can make. If she's hitting a RAM bottleneck but her processor, hard drive, and other components are still coping with the load then upgrading is an option. If everything is at maximum capacity an upgrade will be needed.

Edited by Ehsanit, 24 October 2010 - 07:18 AM.

[Ehsanit]

You can find out what type of RAM works with a given computer from the site Crucial.com, though you don't necessarily need to buy from that site. At any rate you will not be able to fully use 4GB or more of RAM under 32 bit versions of Windows.

What level she needs her computer to perform at, or how much it is worth, is really a judgement that only she can make. If she's hitting a RAM bottleneck but her processor, hard drive, and other components are still coping with the load then upgrading is an option. If everything is at maximum capacity an upgrade will be needed.

Edited by Ehsanit, 24 October 2010 - 07:18 AM.

[Digerati]

Certainly adding RAM will provide the most bang for the money. And then adding just about any graphics card will help significantly too since she is currently using an on-board graphics solution. At the very least, I would pull and toss the 256Mb module and add another 512Mb for a total of 1Gg - that is generally considered the "sweet spot" for XP with single core CPUs. Then adding just about any graphics card will not only provide a better GPU, but the card will have its own RAM tweaked for graphics processing, which will free up any system RAM current snagged for graphics.

The problem becomes, however, power. Swapping out the 256 for a 512Mb module won't matter, but adding a graphics card may tax the existing PSU too much. So you MUST ensure the current PSU has enough headroom to support any new hardware.

[rshaffer61]

Just to add in here about your motherboard specs.

The D-3000 motherboard does not support either AGP or PCIe graphic cards, only PCI cards.

[computerdude1985]

Thank you for all of your replies I appreciate it! I figured 1 GB of RAM would be ideal for her computer. As for the graphics card its going to be a cheap one, but much better than the onboard one. With all of these improvements will her computer be able to handle Windows 7?

[rshaffer61]

A good way to find out is Windows 7 Update Advisor.
This will Tell you of any potential issues with either your hardware or software. It will also tell you about drivers available for your system for Win 7

[computerdude1985]

A good way to find out is Winsoqa 7 Update Advisor.
This will Tell you of any potential issues with either your hardware or software. It will also tell you about drivers available for your system for Win 7

Thank you so much I appreciate all of the help!

[123Runner]

Keep in mind also that any peripherals like printers and scanners may not have drivers for windows 7.
If the peripherals are attached to the computer, then running the advisor will tell compatibility.